"What on earth happened?"
Gazing at the enormous bowl-shaped crater before them, the Guard Squad members sent to investigate muttered in disbelief. Where a vast lake should have been, it seemed as though something had scooped it out, and Lake Bai Dao had vanished from its place, leaving behind only a gigantic pit.
"Is this the power of the ancient relics..."
As the team leader spoke, he was gathering data from the scene and sending it back to base.
Someone tensed up and swept their weapon around. The team leader also felt that eerie sensation as if something was lurking in the darkness, watching their every move. After a moment’s thought, he put down his device and said,
They hadn’t gone far before all stopped in their tracks, uncertain when it had happened but the sight of Lake Bai Dao appeared behind them, and the path they had taken to leave... While still visible, they all understood they might never be able to walk it again.
"You can’t open a Space Gate connecting the two places either?"
After failing to find their target on Ice Snow Island, everyone used Nether Cross to rush to a nearby grassland island. Agunas asked Gitalien, who was cooking dinner, glancing up at the sun that had never changed position in the sky, Gitalien said,
"No, the barrier is too strong, and, don’t you feel something odd with the time here?"
"What’s the problem?"
Qi Chen asked, feeling somewhat puzzled, and looking at the time on his phone, Dou Yanlan said,
"It seems there’s no day-night cycle here? Even though it’s already seven in the evening, it still looks like midday."
"Rather than a day-night cycle, it’s more like a shift between danger and safety. Seems difficult to resolve before the first nightfall arrives..."
Feng Yuan said somewhat helplessly as he flipped through the Dark Ancient Book. Xiao Ji nuzzled against Feng Yuan with her head, and after closing the Dark Ancient Book, Feng Yuan looked up at Gitalien and said,
"Later, you send Agunas back to Yongzhen Island. Since it’s the same world, you should be able to open a Space Gate, right?"
"Yes, is there something important?"
Seeing that Feng Yuan didn’t seem to be planning to rest or cause any trouble, Gitalien answered seriously. Glancing at Agunas, Feng Yuan said,
"Tell them, the first nightfall will arrive tomorrow at eleven forty-seven PM and will last until eleven forty-seven AM the following day."
"Is there a problem with the night?"
"At night, shadow creatures will appear; they are undying beings. Do not fantasize about driving them back, just defend the island, it’s a war of attrition."
Feng Yuan said calmly, and Agunas nodded without asking more. As for whether Feng Yuan and the others staying here would be in danger—without considering Agunas and Gitalien’s presence, Feng Yuan himself wasn’t defenseless. Pressed into a corner, his opponents might just end up completely shattering this piece of the world.
"By the way, remember to remind them that those shadow creatures have no Attribute and are immune to physical damage, so don’t bother trying conventional weapons."
"Isn’t that characteristic of Ghost Series Spirit Beasts?"
Qi Chen asked, somewhat surprised. Unlike the tangible Death Series, Ghost Series Spirit Beasts, except for a few exceptions, mostly had no physical form or could freely shift between tangible and intangible, thus requiring energy attacks to be effective against them.
"Sort of, but those things aren’t quite like Ghost Series Spirit Beasts. As natural phenomena, they are undying, indestructible beings. The best method is to use a Barrier to block them, though I’m not sure if they can hold up a Barrier large enough for defense."
Although the City Defense System was also capable of this, it required consumption of stored Energy, and Feng Yuan couldn’t guarantee they would resolve this before the second nightfall arrived. Despite lacking specific data, he could guess based on Maomu City’s City Defense System that Dao Lake City’s Yongzhen Island could sustain its defense system for at most three nights before it would fail due to energy supply exhaustion.
In fact, if Yongzhen Island did not have a power plant, it might not even last that long. The old City Defense System could convert supplied energy into electricity to replace power plants through specific lines, but due to a lack of adequate energy-producing devices in the old system, doing so would directly decrease the duration of defense.
"If we use an Energy-based mixed Barrier, we should be able to. After all, there are many participants of Lake’s Brave Ones, and if they take turns resting, there shouldn’t be a big problem."
Li Xiaowei said, then suddenly recalled a serious issue,
"However, based on Great Xia City’s usual food reserves, while having more people has defensive advantages, it could lead to a severe food crisis."
No city would store food based on the total number of people during events unless they anticipated using it. But if they’d anticipated it, why not cancel the event or evacuate the crowd in the first place?
"As long as we’re not short of food, we should be fine."
Glancing at Gitalien, Feng Yuan said indifferently. Seeing Feng Yuan look his way, Gitalien said irritably,
"What are you looking at me for? I don’t have a habit of stockpiling food."
Agunas flicked his tail and said,
"I don’t have much in the way of food left either. How about you?"
There was no need to ask Qi Chen and the others; they were only here to participate in the Lake’s Brave Ones event, not to play a wilderness survival game. They certainly wouldn’t have prepared for something .
"Are there no wild animals here?"
Li Xiaowei asked with some confusion. Shaking his head, Feng Yuan said,
"If you count the ones in Lake Bai Dao, there are, but there are none inside the space of the Ancient Ruins. How long those fish in Lake Bai Dao can last, I have no idea."
Because they had been pulled in as a whole, the fish that originally lived in Lake Bai Dao were still there, but that’s not to mention that they were outside the internal space of the Ancient Ruins. In a pinch, Dao Lake City would consider fishing from there.
Li Xiaowei said with a bit of a headache. She knew all too well how dangerous it could be in the unknown wilderness without sufficient food.
"Forget it, let’s not worry about this for now. Let’s eat something and rest a bit. Once night falls, we won’t be able to relax ."
Feng Yuan said helplessly, lying on the soft grass.
"Night is about to fall..."
Feng Yuan muttered softly, eyeing the sunset. At that moment, a sky-blue, semi-transparent, spherical Barrier enveloped everyone; it was a Barrier laid down by Gitalien, theoretically capable of completely blocking those Shadow Creatures.
As the last trace of sunlight faded, the stars became the sole source of light. The calm grassland was filled with eerie cries, and amid the dim starlight, thick, ink-like shadows began to form on the ground. The shadows clung to the earth, slowly converging towards the Barrier.
If one just looked at the ground around the Barrier, it was as if it had plunged into absolute darkness, devoid of light. Watching the dense shadows outside the Barrier, Li Xiaowei said,
"Are those the Shadow Creatures?"
"Why aren’t they making any moves?"
Li Xiaowei asked, somewhat puzzled. Other than the disturbing cries, there was only the pressure brought by shadows and the unknown. As for danger? She didn’t feel it until facing it head-on.
Dou Yanlan asked with a sense of wonder,
"Why aren’t they affected?"
Qi Chen asked, looking around at the shadows in confusion. Glancing at Gitalien, Dou Yanlan said,
"Shouldn’t this Barrier have the Divine Beasts’ intimidation? Why are they showing no reaction?"
"Could it be that they are incredibly powerful?"
The intimidation of Divine Beasts could affect the actions of those with weak strength, but for those with high strength, it almost had no effect and could even provoke a fighting spirit. Since they hadn’t seen the actual bodies of those Shadow Creatures, Dou Yanlan could only speculate from indirect observations.
"That’s not it. It’s just that they are unaffected by Gitalien’s intimidation."
Feng Yuan said and gently patted Xiao Ji’s head, saying,
"Try using the Wind of Death."
Xiao Ji looked at Feng Yuan puzzled, not understanding why he would say that, but still instinctively flapped its wings. Grey gusts of wind swept towards the Shadow Creatures outside the Barrier.
Unlike their disregard for the Barrier’s intimidation, the Shadow Creatures seemed to dread the Wind of Death and scurried away to the sides. Soon, amidst the obscurity claimed by the darkness, a hint of greenness appeared on the ground.